About

Zimpure 2, 3D Printing without toxic emissions

€18,260

pledged of €10,000 goal

141

backers

Have you noticed this strange and irritating smell when you’re near your 3D Printer? It’s actually a mix of harmful gases and nanoparticles. This is due to thermoplastic fusion. Professionals in the thermoplastic industry and folks with an average sense of smell, you have already smelled this odor of melted plastic and you know it can’t be good for your health.

That’s why we’ve developed Zimpure

An efficient, compact and discrete air purifier specially designed for your 3D printers.

Our new and innovative way of filtering nanoparticles and gases issued by 3D printers relies on vacuuming the fumes directly where they are produced: near the extrusion nozzle, where the plastic melts.

Thanks to our new system and our high-grade filters, Zimpure is filtering 99% of the nanoparticles and more than 90% of the gases released!

With Zimpure, you can now print any material without worrying about toxic fumes!

Let Zimpure vacuum these toxic fumes!

Just download and print your special suction head, plug Zimpure in, and start printing safely by letting Zimpure vacuum all the fumes.

Nanoparticles (NPs) and Ultrafine Particles (UFPs) are the interchangeable generic terms for any solid particle less than 100 nanometers in size. UFPs can be dangerous not only because of their chemical composition, which may or may not be toxic, but especially due to their size. When inhaled, UFPs can be trapped in the smallest areas of the lung’s alveoli, tiny sacs covered with blood capillaries where oxygen and carbon dioxide are exchanged between the blood stream and the lungs. UFPs are small enough to pass directly from the lungs and into the blood stream. They are carried in the blood flow to other organs where they accumulate, such as the brain, the liver, or the spleen. These particles need not be toxic in and of themselves to cause serious health issues and poisoning : even PLA particles (currently widely believed to be non-toxic) can build up in the lungs and cause serious harm. On the other hand, VOCs can include any number of different chemicals and in varying amounts. In ABS for example, the VOCs released when the filament is melted can contain 10 to 20 different chemicals, most notably Styrene, a chemical classified as toxic and a possible carcinogen. Source

What really happens in your room:

If we consider one 3D printer operating continuously in a well-mixed 45 m3 (1600 ft3) furnished and conditioned office space (complete air renewal rate of once every hour), we observe an ultrafine particles concentration of 58 000 particles/cm3. This is 11 times more than what can be found in the ambient air of a typical home, office or school. Regarding the gases: under the same hypotheses, the predicted styrene concentration is about 150µg/m3, which is 20 times more than the highest styrene concentration measured in commercial buildings in the U.S. That is not acceptable! In France, particle pollution ranks 3rd as a cause of death: more than 48 000 people die every year as a direct consequence. We cannot accept even more pollution inside our homes! Source

Zimpure, an effective and certified system

It was important for us to test and certify our new and innovative way of filtering nanoparticles and gases issued by 3D Printers. That’s why we worked with a specialized laboratory (LSCE, CEA) to test, improve and certify our product. We are now proud to provide an efficient, reliable, compact and affordable filtering solution for all 3D printer users!

Zimpure combines two filters: One ultrafine particles filter, which filters 99.9% of the UFPs released. One gases filter, which filters 98% of the VOCs released.

Our powerful and quiet fan ensures an efficient suction flow: More than 99% of the UFPs and 90% of the gases released by the printer are vacuumed.

Ultrafine Particle Concentration without and with Zimpure

This curve was recorded by a Condensation Particles Counter (CPC), measuring particles from 10nm diameter to 300nm. The average concentration of UFPs while printing without using Zimpure is 373 539#/cm3. When Zimpure is plugged in, the concentration falls back to 170#/cm3. It means that 99.9% of the UFPs are filtered!

This curve was recorded with a Mass Spectrometer (PTRMS), measuring VOC concentration for each atomic mass, in order to know the concentration of each different compound. The average concentration of Styrene while printing without using Zimpure is 78 ppb. When Zimpure is plugged, Styrene concentration falls back to 1.38 ppb. It means that 98.2% of the Styrene is filtered!Source

Compatibility

Thanks to our awesome community, our compatibilities are growing every day! Some of our first clients made some very good suction heads.

We also have a process enabling us to design a suction head for new printers without accessing them, thanks to the folks that are helping us, with or without designing skills.

Zimpure V2: New design, Quiet and injected moulded

After our first successful Kickstarter campaign, we are now even more convinced that our product makes a lot of sense. 3D Printer users are waiting for it, like it, and are truly satisfied with the efficiency of our system! That's why we've decided to develop a new version, more professional, with a nice injected moulded case. This case is filled with acoustic foam to make Zimpure quieter. Besides being a very nice product, Zimpure is now very quiet! Check it out in this video.

Production

We set up our production facility in France after our first Kickstarter campaign.

We are now all set and ready to produce! We have planned the unplanned and selected the best suppliers with the best components for this V2.

They support us

Team

Antoine & Nicolas, Friends, Roommates and Partners!

Friends since high school, we started our business together because our skills and knowledge are truly complementary.

Nicolas: "Antoine is a fantastic Web Developer and student in Data Science. He started creating websites at 12! Deeply passionate about the Internet, he brings his web experience and knowledge to this project."

Antoine: "Nicolas is a true Maker. He has loved making things since his childhood. That's what led him to become an electronics engineer and a 3D printing Lover. 3D Designer and Maker, he decided to create Zimple in order to share his work with anybody which might need it."

Risks and challenges

The plastic moulded parts are all made by the same supplier: this allows for assembly tests before launching any production.
Our production site is fully set to start production, and our suppliers are ready and selected. We already have most of the components (except for the power supply, plastic and foam parts, packaging), as they are the same as the ones used on the first Zimpure.
We need your help to launch our production, back us! :)